Proggy heroes Dead Letter Circus made their way to Bateau Bay for their east coast regional tour alongside our fav newcomers Reliqa and both bands impressed the crowd who had gathered to see them. Kicking off the evening were Reliqa who entered the stage to the soft piano sounds of ‘GoldenAge‘ before erupting into an energy-filled set with opener ‘Insomnia‘ which kept the crowd interested for the duration. The sheer amount of energy and positive attitude really proved how much they want this dream of theirs to work.

Lead guitarist BrandonLloyd constantly shredding notes and playing as tight as possible was awe-inspiring while frontwoman Monique Pym‘s vocals sounded constantly on point for the entirety of their set, despite running back and forth across the stage to play keys. Her sneaky yells boosted their sound a lot and I personally would like to see them hone in on that. About halfway through the set I couldn’t help but notice the huge smile on drummer Shannon Griesberg’s face, which I later realised was there for the duration of their set, while bassist MilesKnox, remained calm and cool, letting his hair down to let us know shit was about to get serious.

The Reliqa kids did a fantastic job of showcasing what they’ve been working on with their latest EP Eventide(our review here) and one keen AF fan was singing along to every single word which was great to see. Sooner or later it’ll be fuller crowds doing the same and I for one can’t wait for that day…

The main event was next with Dead Letter Circus taking to the stage and ripping straight into their single ‘The Armour You Own‘ followed up with ‘In Plain Sight‘. The duration of their set consisted of a variety of styles and tempos which added to the atmosphere of the club. Frontman KimBenzie, who we all know is infamous for never wearing shoes on stage, was forced to chuck some on about four songs in after small bits of broken glass ended up on stage. He labelled the idea a “world first” and later praised his decision to wear them saying it was much more comfortable and “more spongy” as he continued to bound about the stage afterwards.

Honourable mention needs to bassist StewartHill who had an outstanding way of moving about the stage with some crazy stances and magnificent facial expressions added to his onstage persona. He brought a lot of energy to the performance with those almost insect-like movements.

The show came to an end and fans were left with huge smiles on their faces and appreciation for a band like DLC, who after all of these years, still visit regional cities for those who can’t make the big smoke.